The Seven Stars of the Supreme King
by Hane no Zaia
Summary: AU. Marufuji Sho's plans to attend the Duel Academia and hopefully join the Duellist Court upon graduation are ruined by three things: 1) His lack of ability, 2) His lack of confidence, and 3) Yuki Judai, with emphasis on the latter. At least he's in good company. Or not. Companion fic to The King and His Court.
1. The Predicament of Marufuji Sho

_Companion fic to The King and His Court._

 _We got the whole year because I couldn't figure out where to split it. Oh well._

 _Last edited May 7_ _th_ _2016._

 _Timeline: Takes place during and after the second chapter of the King and his Court._

 **-.-.-.-**

 **Year One:**

 **The Predicament of Marufuji Sho**

 **-.-.-.-**

" _Say, Judai…"_

 **-.-.-.-**

Yuki Judai put on his new uniform jacket, marvelling at the redness of it. Around him, a few other students grumbled about the colour, bemoaning that they would've been yellow if they hadn't screwed up on the written part of the exam. Judai cared little about that though; yellow really wasn't his colour.

 **-.-.-.-**

" _Why would you like to become strong?"_

 **-.-.-.-**

He reached into the collar of his shirt, pulling out a hidden talisman with the intention of looking at it. But he ultimately ended up clutching it close to it chest as if his life depended upon it. _Soon_ , he promised himself. _It won't be long now_.

 **-.-.-.-**

"Is it true? Is it true that the King himself‒?"

"‒Thinks he's something special; what a joke."

Marufuji Sho ‒ an Osiris Red student ‒ looked nervously to his similarly red-clad neighbour. "They're talking about you, you know? Not even being discreet about it."

Yuki Judai let out a noncommittal hum in response, not even looking up from whatever he was doing. Sho leaned in for a closer look.

Doodling. Yuki Judai was doodling in class and they'd barely been there for one whole day.

"Class hasn't even started yet," Judai casually offered up, as if somehow aware of Sho's thoughts. Now that was almost creepy. "Besides, the King and I just happened to run into each other. He asked me if I wanted to become strong and I said yes, and so he offered to become my sponsor. Right, and he also gave me this card. Said it was lucky."

"Lucky?" Sho eyed the Monster Card with some scepticism. Of all Monsters out there, why Winged Kuriboh? Obviously, Kuriboh Monsters in general had always been closely associated with the King despite their alleged weakness. Then again, Kuroboh Monsters did limit the amount of Battle Damage one could take, so maybe‒

Sho squawked, startling violently as something brushed against his leg.

Along with most of those present in the auditorium, Judai looked away from what he was doing and at Sho. However, unlike most, his attention shifted downwards. Incredibly embarrassed, Sho then witnessed Judai retrieving a fat tabby cat from beneath the desk. Then, after settling the cat onto his own lap, Judai reached around it to continue on doodling without a care in the world. Really, the nerve of him.

"Hey, Yuki! You're not supposed to bring pets to school, and definitely not to class!" someone from blue crowed, while another added in a fake whisper "Aw, don't be so hard on him, you guys. He was raised in a barn; he doesn't know the difference" which evoked another bout of laughter from the blues in the immediate vicinity.

His own embarrassment temporarily forgotten, Sho sent a look in Judai's direction.

"It isn't mine," Judai offered up in response, tone indicating that he was talking to Sho and not responding to the blues, as one would've expected.

"But doesn't it bother you?!" Sho hissed under his breath. "It's bothering _me_."

Judai shot him a slightly puzzled look. Then there was a brief flash of something in his eyes ‒ sadness? Hurt? "Oh, so should I move or will you?"

That wasn't what Sho had meant; that was far from what Sho had actually meant. "Neither of those. But why aren't you talking back?" he asked, keeping his voice deliberately low.

Judai shrugged mildly at that, scratching the tabby cat beneath the chin. "My guardian said not to waste time convincing people with heads so blown up that their feet are barely on the ground. Apparently, the pressure in their heads dulls their hearing."

Sho found himself gaping. He was quick to close his mouth though, when the lecturer, who was also the dorm leader of the Red Dorm, finally turned up to start the lesson.

Down below, Professor Daitokuji looked up, squinting like he either needed a different prescription for his glasses or dim the lights significantly; later, Sho would come to recognise this as the man's normal state. "Ah, Pharaoh, there you are," the man commented, looking in Sho's general direction. "I've been wondering where you'd wandered off to."

There was question on everyone's minds, even lips. However, it ultimately remained unasked, seeing that the cat responded to the professor's call, answering the unasked question while leaving behind so many more, like who in their right mind would name their cat _Pharaoh_.

Even without a cat on his lap, Judai still spent the lesson doodling.

Again, Sho was left wondering why the King had decided that it was such a great idea to send this guy here. With all due likelihood, Sho wasn't the only one thinking this.

 **-.-.-.-**

"Judai."

There was a slight hum in response, indicating that Judai could possibly be listening. As had already been proven however, there were no absolute guarantees. Still, seeing that they were now back at their dorm, in the relative privacy of their dorm room, Sho finally gathered up the courage to ask about a few of the things Judai had mentioned earlier that day, now that there wasn't any audience.

"You said that you and the King just happened to run into each other, right?"

"Yeah?" So he _was_ listening after all.

"And that he asked you if you wanted to become strong?"

Judai's attention finally flitted to Sho; it was only momentary though, because in the next moment, he was back to sorting out his Deck on the floor. "Uh-huh?"

"And that he agreed to become your sponsor after you said yes?"

"Pretty much. What about it?"

There was a brief pause due to a sudden bout of hesitation before Sho resolutely pushed onward, reasoning that it was now or never. "You've already beat Professor Chronos, who was using his personal Deck. For someone like me, that's already plenty. I mean, I‒Why do you want to become strong? What's your motivation? You don't seem to care very much about classes or about rank, so why‒?"

There was a beat of silence.

Judai gave him a decidedly considering look, retaining it for several moments before finally averting his eyes, shrugging while he was at it. "I want to be strong enough to protect or at the very least support the people I care about. Isn't that enough?"

Suddenly, Sho's own reasons ‒ proving himself to his brother ‒ seemed so utterly pointless in comparison.

"What about you, Sho? What's your motivation?"

Despite knowing the meaninglessness of his ambition, Sho told him.

Judai looked vaguely surprised but not in a negative way at all. "You've got an older brother? That's cool. I'm an only child myself."

"Never mind, it's a dream; a delusion. He pretty much told me that himself."

"You know, that brother of yours sounds kind of mean."

Sho was moments away from protesting when something within him agreed that yes, Ryo had been kind of mean for a while now. Still‒ "He's right though. It's not like a Red like me's ever going to‒"

Judai actually snorted at that. "Red, Blue or Yellow… they're just the colour of our jackets. We're all red on the inside, you know?"

While technically true, it was also an incredibly morbid way of putting things.

"Besides," Judai went on to say, giving Sho a look that was a strange mixture of sincerity and amusement. "You've got me on your team, right?"

Suddenly overcome by immense frustration, Sho started rubbing furiously at his eyes.

"Hey, Sho. Are you crying?"

 _Damn it all!_

Deeply ashamed that such careless words had effectively moved him to tears, Sho was fully prepared to blame it all on having gotten something in his eye or being allergic to cats and whatnot, but‒

"Hey, pipe it down! Some people are trying get some sleep over here!"

Sho was literally moments away from a repeat of what happened this morning. However, Judai's hand on his mouth muffled the part surprised and part terrified shriek that would've otherwise woken up the rest of the dorm. Really, especially in hindsight, Sho was deeply thankful for that; his already wounded pride would only have been able to take so much abuse during the course of a single day after all.

"Sorry, Hayato." Grinning, Judai finally removed his hand and instead waved apologetically at the scary-looking guy in the bunk bed closest to the ceiling. "I guess we got a bit carried away."

This was how Marufuji Sho finally met Maeda Hayato, more than twenty-four hours after they had first started living together.

"Judai, if you already knew about Hayato, then why didn't you warn me? I thought we were friends!"

Judai looked a bit embarrassed at that. "Actually, I wasn't completely sure if he was a real person or if he was a Duel Spirit, so‒"

This was also how Marufuji Sho was clued in on the fact that Yuki Judai apparently had the ability to both see and talk to Duel Monster Spirits without actively summoning them.

"What's next then? Are you the fugitive heir to some distant kingdom? Is your guardian actually a magical dragon?"

There was something decidedly uncanny in the way that Judai smiled. For the sake of his own continued sanity, Sho opted to not only avoid pursuing the matter but to also forget all about ever having said anything.

"Yeah, those blue guys would never live it down, would they? I bet their heads would totally explode or something."

Surprisingly, Hayato was the first to laugh. It basically went downhill from there and they had to have woken up at least two thirds of the dorm by the end of it, including their esteemed dorm leader.

"Honestly, as much as I'm pleased to see the three of you getting along, people are trying to get some sleep around here."

"Sorry, Professor."

"Won't happen again, Professor."

 **-.-.-.-**

It won't happen again, they had said, but it would happen again, and again, and again, and again. By that time however, most other Reds had already dropped out and left the island. Osiris Red was after all not just considered the lowest ranking; it also gave the least privileges, meaning that plenty of those used to living more extravagant lifestyles left after failing to get their desired promotion.

Hayato had also left before his time, for family reasons. The empty spot in the Red Dorm had soon been filled however, and by someone fairly unexpected at that. By some strange twist of fate, Manjoume Jun, one of the Blue students that had really had it in for Judai, had lost against him in an Official Duel, dropped out, come back as a representative of North Academy, and had lost to Judai again in an Official Duel before finally returning to the Central Academy, only to get demoted into Osiris Red. Really, the irony.

As things turned out, Manjoume could also see Duel Monster Spirits without actively summoning them. In addition to that, Sho could've sworn that he'd seen the other call down lightning in a fit of rage after receiving an unfavourable response to his request to get transferred back into Obelisk Blue.

After hearing about it, Judai all too gleefully took it upon himself to call him Manjoume Thunder. Surprisingly, the use had spread quickly and was even endorsed by Manjoume himself.

Surprisingly, Manjoume had also turned out to be a fairly decent guy after having been taken down a few pegs, although obviously, he still refused to wear the red uniform, keeping the black one he'd received at North Academy.

Of course, by the time things had finally begun to settle down again, Edo Phoenix had arrived at the academy armed with his new Deck, the Destiny Heroes, and a definite purpose in mind.

"This won't end well," Professor Daitokuji had uttered in a bout of prophetic wisdom when he had first been informed of the fact.

It hadn't.

 **-.-.-.-**

Sho felt incredibly alone where he sat in the school's infirmary, keeping watch over his best ‒ First? Only? ‒ friend for the third night in a row.

It had only been days since the arrival of Edo Phoenix. Even so, more than a third of the school had already joined the newly established dorm for the Society of Light, headed by that creepy fortune-teller Saiou; these included Manjoume, Asuka, Misawa, and their numbers were growing steadily by the day.

Edo's whereabouts and activities were unknown; after regaining his old Deck of summoning contracts, he had left for an unknown destination. Maybe he had left the island or maybe he had stayed; Sho couldn't have cared less which was the case.

Judai meanwhile had remained largely unchanged; he still hadn't woken up since the conclusion of that fateful Duel, practically comatose. In the meantime, Sho had barely left his side, not even to attend classes. With Manjoume now in the Society of the Light and Professor Daitokuji having gone missing, the Red Dorm was empty. No longer attending classes, Sho instead found himself writing to his brother, who had graduated early to become the Knight of the Cyber Dragons. Sho had also considered writing King Yugi, but had ultimately decided against it; whether the man was technically Judai's sponsor or not, it was well-known that the King did not interfere with Academia matters, even when it might have been justified to do so.

"Really, young Marufuji, you should try to get some sleep. If you collapse as well, then who's going to keep watch over Judai?"

It was a good question, and the answer was no one. The one asking it was Ms. Ayukawa, the school nurse who also doubled as the leader of the girl's Blue Dorm. From the start, she had not had the heart to ask Sho to leave, possibly refraining so that she could monitor Sho's condition more closely and stage an intervention if it proved necessary. Caught in a moment of despair, Sho had asked if she thought Judai was going to be like this forever. Putting on a brave front, the evidently troubled nurse had attempted to encourage him with the words that "I'm sure that he'll wake up any day now. We just have to remain patient for a little longer."

That however hadn't been Sho's only question, but the other hand gone by unasked, seeing that Ms. Ayukawa likely did not have the answer whether it was possible that one of the cards in Edo's Deck had in some way been responsible for Judai's condition, and if so, how it could be reversed. The only ones capable of doing either of those things were probably in the Society of Light and likely unwilling or uninterested in helping.

"We just have to remain patient for a little longer," Ms. Ayukawa had said. Frankly though, Sho could feel his own breaking point approaching, if not that day then perhaps in the next. He had only intended to rest his eyes, just for a couple of minutes, but he must have dozed off somewhere, because when he opened his eyes again, he found the bed he had been guarding empty and Ms. Ayukawa standing over by her desk, looking worriedly towards the door.

 **-.-.-.-**

Despite feeling fairly dazed with sleep, exhaustion and whatnot, Sho wasted little time. Ms. Ayukawa might have opposed it vocally. She had made no physical attempt of stopping him however, probably realising the futility of the notion.

Breathless as he ran, first through the darkened hallways of the academy and then through the woods, Sho tried not to think about how strange it was for Judai to walk so briskly, so determinedly; Judai oftentimes had a lousy sense of direction after all, and he only very seldom hurried for anything. Besides, he had only just woken up after days of having eaten nothing, and Judai's appetite was fairly legendary.

Then suddenly, Judai's gait slowed to a stop. Starting to catch up at last, Sho noticed the other was heaving. "Judai?"

Lifting his head slightly, Judai turned his head slightly, still using the tree trunk next to him for additional support. "Sho?"

 **-.-.-.-**

Together, they returned to the Red Dorm. Sho supported Judai, who kept stumbling now that the initial rush of adrenaline had left him. Once they arrived though, they saw lights coming from the window of the supposedly empty dorm, and even more spectacularly, from something beneath Judai's shirt. Though he was exhausted, Judai wasted no time pulling it out; it was a talisman of some sort, and it obviously carried some significance, given its eerie glow.

"Judai?"

Judai looked uncertain, possibly even a bit fearful. At the same time though, he looked determined. Then, probably picking up on Sho's uneasiness, he smiled a bit weakly. In the darkness surrounding them and in the eerie light being emitted from the talisman, he came across as vaguely ill, which probably wasn't all that far from the actual truth. "Ready?"

Sho wasn't really ready, but the world didn't really care about that.

Moments thereafter, there was the unmistakable creaking sound of a door opening. Someone emerged from the dorm; from Professor Daitokuji's private quarters, Sho now realised. It wasn't the professor however.

In the doorway stood a complete stranger, wearing a coat that was mostly black.

Their aura had a decidedly menacing quality to it; Sho instinctively wanted to crawl up and hide behind a rock somewhere. This didn't seem to be an option though, and the case was the same with running as far as his legs could carry him, because Judai's legs had folded beneath him, leaving him slumped against Sho's side, and Sho's own muscles had frozen up. So did his thoughts, as the black-coated stranger began descending the staircase at a measured pace before his black boots finally impacted on the gravel beneath it and then the grass bordering it.

As the tall stranger made his approach, Sho's frozen brain finally registered the strange light from the other's chest area; it originated from a talisman, a halved pendant, that was similar ‒ if not the corresponding piece ‒ to the one Judai was wearing. Now, Sho also had a better view of the domino mask adorning the upper part of the other's face, its gemlike eyes gleaming ominously in the faint light.

Still, essentially terrified or not, Sho only flinched when the masked figure, now at close range, dropped down to one knee. When the stranger's hand reached for Judai though, Sho reacted, illogically placing himself in its path. Surprisingly, that stopped them, at least temporarily.

"Sho, it's alright. He's here to help."

Sho stole a brief glance at Judai before staring doubtfully at the figure. The latter touched the mask, seemingly with the intention of dislodging it.

Moments thereafter, the mask evaporated before their very eyes.

The face that met Sho's eyes both surprised and unnerved him, although he couldn't for the life of him tell why.

"Ryo's little brother, am I right? Name's Fubuki. You've heard of me at least, right?"

Sho was surprised ‒ no, stunned ‒ enough to let the guy scoop up an evidently groggy Judai and to trail after them as they headed for Professor Daitokuji's quarters. Hell, Sho was even moving ahead to open the door for them.

 **-.-.-.-**

Once in Professor Daitokuji's quarters, Sho was gradually coming to terms with the fact that he might have rather inadvertently signed himself up for the ride of a lifetime.

First Judai, looking far better now that he'd been given copious amounts of food, had sat down cross-legged on the floor and given a brief account of what had transpired within his own little world in the time since his Duel with Edo. "Basically, I woke up in this place called Neo-Space, where a bunch of aliens told me they'd agree to lend me their powers if I agreed to become their Knight."

Looking uncharacteristically tense, Professor Daitokuji, who was back and apparently an acquaintance of this Fubuki guy, had asked Judai if he'd agreed to the contract. Going by the slight shrug, Judai most definitely had. This had made the professor get up to retrieve what turned out to be a Deck of cards.

In response, Judai produced his own Deck, putting it on the floor before them before drawing the top one, turning it over to look and smiling a bit sadly at it. "It's blank."

To Sho, it wasn't. To Sho, it wasn't blank; it was just the card of the _Elemental Hero Featherman_.

Professor Daitokuji meanwhile nodded in clear understanding, putting the Deck on the floor next to Judai's. "Thanks to the Ante Rule, the Elemental Hero contract currently belongs to Edo Phoenix."

"They're all blank," Judai offered up as he returned the card to the Deck, resting his hand briefly on top of it. "I can't see or hear them anymore; I can't see or hear anything anymore."

Again, the professor nodded as if it all made a great deal of sense.

Surprisingly, it was that Fubuki guy who answered from where he was standing at the other end of the room. "Saiou has imbued the Light of Ruin into the cards of his pawns. Losing a Duel against a Knight of the Light means falling under its influence; the Gentle Darkness protected you from this."

Sho didn't know what the Gentle Darkness was. Going by the look that crossed Judai's face though, _he_ most likely did.

"Yubel?" Judai finally asked, reaching up to touch the still glowing half of the medallion around his neck.

Fubuki ‒ Sho's brother's supposedly missing friend ‒ dipped his head in affirmation and gestured to his own piece. "Yubel got caught in an ambush and can't move right now, so she sent me here instead."

For once, Judai asked a surprisingly relevant question. "And you are?"

Fubuki smiled, his bright facial expression proving a huge contrast to his dark attire. "I'm Tenjoin Fubuki, the future Knight of the Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon, the once and forever BFF of Marufuji Ryo and Fujiwara Yusuke, and a member of the Seven Stars Assassins… though right now, I suppose that we could call it the Six Stars Assassins."

"What happened to the seventh?" Judai asked, not even bothering to ask why the heck Asuka's missing brother was apparently a member of a group of assassins.

His expression once again serious, Fubuki nodded to Professor Daitokuji, who was apparently more than just a little involved in all of this, going by how he reached into his pocket to retrieve a small object.

"The Seventh Star fell," the professor said at last, placing a golden ring adorned with an eye on top of the Deck he'd already placed on the floor. "This is yours now."

That didn't make a whole lot of sense to Sho and it probably didn't make a whole lot of sense to Judai either, going by the way he folded his arms across his chest. "Basically, you're telling me to put on the Ring and join your secret cult? To fight against the Light?"

"We're asking you to lead it," Professor Daitokuji corrected, confirming Sho's mounting suspicions that their dorm leader and alchemy teacher ‒ _former_ dorm leader and alchemy teacher? ‒ wasn't just slightly involved but actually in quite deep. "Because right now, you're the only one capable of Summoning the _Sangenma_."

The Three Phantom What now?

Judai glanced at him in a way that told Sho that he wasn't the only one feeling like he'd missed out on a memo somewhere. "And why would I do that?"

"To defeat the Light."

"Why?"

"Because they're trying to destroy the world."

" _Why?"_

"You and your guardian Yubel have both been targeted by the Light," Professor Daitokuji explained, uncharacteristically serious. "You need to burn away its tainting influence. Putting on the Ring will help you channel the energy of the spirits through your core."

Judai gave the ring a decidedly sceptical look while Sho gave his former teacher a mildly horrified one, realising that the _Sangenma_ were probably related to the _Sangenshin_ contracted to King Yugi ‒ three phantom demons in opposition to three phantom gods. Oh, and said teacher was also apparently a member of a secret cult of assassins and trying to recruit Sho's best friend as its next leader.

Then, tension drained slightly from Judai's shoulders as he sighed, apparently having arrived at some type of conclusion. "Explain," he said at last, uncharacteristically serious himself now. "I'm not becoming a cult leader without a good explanation."

The fact that Judai was even considering it said quite a few things about his perception of the situation.

Somewhat predictably, Professor Daitokuji launched right into it. "The former owner of the Ring was Kagemaru, the cofounder and former chairman of Academia and the leader of the Seven Star Assassins. Kagemaru's goal was to resurrect the Sangenma sealed beneath the school, and he created the Seven Stars Assassins for this purpose. The assassins are elite duellists with access to the Dark Items, talismans that grant them access to Shadow Magic."

"Shadow Magic?" Sho found himself repeating. "But isn't that‒?"

"The Dark Items are essentially replicas of the Millennium Items," Professor Daitokuji explained, smiling kindly in Sho's direction. "Botched replicas, I might add, but they do have powers of their own. For example, the Pendant can protect its bearer against foreign influence; it's divided though, so its power is halved."

Judai and Fubuki exchanged a look, one questioning and the other mildly apologetic.

"Originally, the two pieces were guarded by a tribe known as the Gravekeepers," the professor moved on to explain, nodding in direction of the two. "They were won by Yubel, who took one and gave the other to Judai."

Yubel, Judai's guardian. Sho looked at Judai. Judai didn't seem to notice, clutching his half of the pendant while giving Professor Daitokuji a look that was uncharacteristically guarded.

"You did know," Judai said at last.

The professor shrugged mildly at that. "More or less. I mean, I was curious when I first saw you with that pendant, but when Fubuki came to me with his story, it all made sense."

Judai gave Fubuki a similar look next, receiving a similar shrug.

"I'm possessed by a dark entity," Fubuki explained. "By giving me her piece of the pendant, Yubel saved me from getting completely taken over. I mean, I owe her for that, but I'm also in the Seven Stars Assassins for my own reasons."

Again, Judai gave the ring on top of the Deck a considering look. "Why?"

"Given enough offerings, gods will grant wishes," Professor Daitokuji explained, glancing towards the door as Fubuki opened it to admit Pharaoh. "We all have wishes that cannot be attained by mortal means. Some are reasonable while others are less reasonable; we're a mismatched group with a common purpose but vastly differing motives. Personally, I'm in this for fairly selfish reasons ‒ compared to Fubuki at least."

Sho looked at Fubuki. Judai did the same.

Closing the door, Fubuki moved to lean against it. "I'm fine with it staying like this as long as I can get Yusuke back in one piece from wherever the Darkness banished him."

"Personally, I just want to live long and prosper," Professor Daitokuji commented, nodding seriously to himself. "Since I got that dreadful disease, I've already had to switch bodies once and I tell you, it's not a very pleasant experience."

So apparently, their dorm leader and former alchemy teacher was not only a member of a secret cult set on the revival of demon gods but also a homunculus. Sho wasn't entirely certain as to how to react to that.

"And the others?" Judai asked simply. "What did that Kagemaru guy want?"

"Kagemaru wanted roughly the same as me, with a few extras." Professor Daitokuji bent down to pick up Pharaoh. "Longevity in addition to youth, a boost to his physique and magical abilities, and with the Ring, an ability to absorb an opponent's soul."

" _Soul?!"_ Sho repeated, at the same time as Judai gave the ring another considering look before actually narrowing his eyes at the professor sitting there just calmly petting the cat.

"Yes, that's right, Judai," the professor responded, entirely focused on Judai now. "In his original plan, Kagemaru intended on using the threat from the Seven Stars Assassin as an excuse to give Headmaster Samejima Seven Spirit Keys to distribute amongst powerful duellists at the school, forcing them into duelling the assassins to protect the keys. The purpose of this would've been to collect enough spirit energy to reawaken the _Sangenma_ , however that is not all. It isn't possible for just anyone to control the _Sangenma_ ; if the wrong person summons them, they'll wreak havoc. To avoid this, Kagemaru had his eyes set on absorbing the soul of someone qualified."

"Qualified?" Sho repeated, attention alternating between the two of them. "You mean that he‒?"

"That's right." Professor Daitokuji nodded seriously. "Kagemaru had his sights set on Judai's soul, because right now, Judai's the only one on this island and one of the few people in this country with the potential to control the _Sangenma_."

Judai himself neither confirmed nor denied the allegation, but the look in his eyes was far colder than what Sho had grown used to seeing.

"It's perfectly obvious to anyone with even the slightest bit of potential," the professor stated, squirming a bit at last. "I wasn't planning on letting him go through with it though, I promise."

Reassuring, yet also not so reassuring. Surprisingly though, Sho found himself being less concerned about the professor turned assassin and all the more concerned about Judai, whose expression had once again darkened significantly.

So far, Sho had never seen Judai angry. Annoyed, yes, but never angry. This was definitely the closest to anger Sho had seen him, as far as he could remember at least. Then again‒

Judai closed his eyes, taking a few deep breaths before reaching up and undoing the knot, placing the now liberated piece of the pendant on the floor. Opening his eyes, he looked decidedly calm, reaching for the ring while the others watched. Sho held his breath.

Judai didn't put the ring on though. Instead, he attached it to the string that had previously held the piece of the pendant. "It'll be on my own terms. Yubel did say that I needed more contracts."

"But you do have another contract pending, yes?" Professor Daitokuji pointed out, gesturing towards Deck he had brought along. "You may use those to make a proper contract with the Neo-Spacians."

Judai gave him a decidedly considering look. "I thought you wanted me to make a contract with the _Sangenma_?"

The professor shook his head. "We need to present the _Sangenma_ with greater offerings than we currently have at hand. In other words, unless we wish to start sacrificing actual lives, we'll simply have to wait. In the meantime, we must put an end to the Society of Light."

Judai obviously considered it, before seemingly arriving at a conclusion. "Alright then."

"It would also be a good opportunity to deal with our own ranks," the professor commented further. "As I've said, some people in the Seven Stars Assassins have less noble motives for joining and seeking the power of the _Sangenma_."

"In other words," Judai said after a while with a definite edge to his voice. "You're telling me to pit my confirmed enemies, mostly brainwashed classmates of mine, against a bunch of possibly loyal and possibly disloyal duellists wielding power over darkness and souls?"

It was a surprisingly sober question and a surprisingly valid one at that. Professor Daitokuji seemed to have anticipated it though, seeing that he had his answer ready within seconds of it being asked. "With Kagemaru's defeat, you're the only one here capable of resurrecting the _Sangenma_. If that doesn't convert all of them, then it should still leave us with a majority."

 **-.-.-.-**

Judai skipped classes the following day, spending it out by the sea with a fishing rod and the company of Pharaoh and Fubuki. Naturally, Sho joined them, because even though Fubuki seemed like a nice guy, he was still a member of a secret cult and supposedly possessed by a dark entity. Besides, with a majority of the students now brainwashed into joining the Society of Light, Sho knew better than to venture out on his own.

Still, while on one hand in disbelief and terrified about the turn that recent events had taken, Sho could on the other hand not comprehend how Headmaster Samejima had sanctioned the formation of the White Dorm instead of freaking expelling that Saiou guy and his companions from the island when they had started ambushing students. Actually, allowing them on the island in the first place had been a show of rather poor judgement in Sho's opinion. Then again, speaking about poor judgement‒

Sho resolutely discarded the thought of penning another letter to his brother, simply because Sho didn't want to explain why his best friend was now the leader of a secret cult, why Sho himself was now more or less an associate of said cult, and why Ryo's missing friend was now back and a member of said cult in addition to being possessed by a dark entity of some sort.

Said possessed candidate for knighthood was also partaking in Judai's fishing habit, but that was another matter altogether.

"I like Tania, Abidos and Don Zaloog," Judai said at last, adjusting the reel. "I'm sceptical about Camula and I _really_ don't like Titan."

Fubuki hummed slightly in response, adjusting his own reel. "And the rest of us?"

Judai shot him a decidedly considering look. Then, after sending a slight smile in Sho's direction, he looked back out towards the sea. "I respect you, as duellists and as people. But if you try to use me or try to use the people that I care about against me, then I can't guarantee that we'll be friends."

Fubuki actually chuckled in response, and when he looked at them, first at Judai, then at Sho and then back again, he looked so kind that Sho would've had trouble believing that the other was a cult member possessed by a dark entity if he hadn't personally seen the other wearing that mask of his.

Of course, the same could be said about Judai, who despite everything alternated between an eerie calm, mild exasperation and a strange mixture of both wry and sincere amusement. Had Sho not been there during the previous night, then he would never have been able to guess that Judai was now the leader of a cult set on the revival of the Three Phantom Demons.

Then again, Sho himself wasn't in any position to be pointing fingers; he had done little to stop him after all. In a sense, one might even have said that Sho himself had joined said cult, seeing that he had albeit reluctantly accepted the half of the pendant Judai had bestowed upon him, naturally understanding that his continued association with Judai would definitely place him in some type of danger and therefore merit some additional protection.

' _Dear brother,'_ Sho internally began, mentally penning out yet another letter that would never be written. _'The good news is that Fubuki's been found. The bad news is that Fubuki's in a cult, that my best friend has recently taken over said cult and that I have recently joined it as well. Most students have been brainwashed into joining the Society of Light though, so I deemed joining up necessary to avoid assimilation. Other than that, we're all doing well. While plotting against the Society of Light, Judai and Fubuki enjoy fishing. I don't particularly enjoy keeping watch over them, but I'm doing it anyway, because they're sure to go off and do something crazy if I don't. I hope you're doing and eating well.'_

Judai's float disappeared in the waves as Sho mentally tacked on a post scriptum. _'P.S. I know you respect Headmaster Samejima a great deal and all, but I personally think the guy's gone senile since he's allowed the Society of Light to remake the Blue Dorm into the White Dorm and is flat-out ignoring the fact that they're going around attacking and brainwashing students. Oh, and by the way, the former chairman and cofounder of Academia, Kagemaru, used to lead the cult that I've recently joined. Professor Daitokuji is also a member by the way, but he seems pretty alright compared to Kagemaru, who apparently wanted to steal Judai's soul.'_

Moments thereafter, cheers erupted as Judai pulled a shimmering fish out of the water.

Sho wondered where his normal student life had gone.

In hindsight though, any chances of such a thing had probably vanished from the point in time that he had ended up befriending Judai.

 **-.-.-.-**

In the end, the Society of Light had been brought down even without the revival of the Three Phantom Demons, because Judai had a contract with the Neo-Spacians and a renewed contract with his old Deck, containing the Elemental Heroes.

First and foremost though, Judai had allies and friends that were more than willing to help out after they'd been liberated from Saiou's whitewashing; Manjoume in particular had brought down a great number of the whitewashed Academia students after he himself had been liberated, tearing off his white jacket to stomp on it with definite rage before donning the black one Judai had oh-so-cheerfully brought along. Asuka had also helped out after having been liberated by Fubuki.

Misawa had been a separate issue; he'd duelled and lost to Tania and subsequently fallen for her. Sho wondered when was a good time to tell him that Tania, sans the magical gauntlet, was actually a tigress. Sho had considered it briefly before finally arriving at the conclusion that it was better to wait until Misawa had recovered a bit from the whole ordeal.

As for the rest of the Seven Stars Assassins, Fubuki was obviously sticking close to Judai, staying in the Red Dorm despite previously having belonged to the Blue Dorm and despite his sister's insistence of him returning there.

The result was that Asuka moved in, which was nice, but also left their room a bit more crowded as Manjoume, in a feeble attempt to get into Asuka's good graces, yielded his own private suite to her and Fubuki, which left him rooming once again with Judai and Sho, and complaining loudly about it.

"Why don't you move back into the Blue Dorm then? I heard they've offered to take you back."

Manjoume scoffed at Judai's offhand comment where they sat in the dorm's small dining room, averting his eyes from the spectacle that was Judai's appetite. Despite trying to focus hard on his own dinner, Sho could've sworn that Manjoume was blushing.

"Like Hell I'd ever go back to that place. They refused to let me keep my jacket. Once you go black, you never go‒"

Now largely back to his largely oblivious self, Judai blinked at him. "Thunder, your face is really red though. You sure you shouldn't go and let the nurse have a look at you?"

If anything, Manjoume's face grew even redder. "L-l-like I'd ever do that. I'm not sick; I'm pissed off."

Judai shrugged mildly at that and went back to his food. Sho privately mused that Manjoume probably felt like he owed Judai a debt, but that he was too embarrassed to admit it.

Edo Phoenix, that damned snob, seemed to harbour similar sentiments. Even after he'd announced that he was leaving Academia, returning to the Duellist Court as the Knight of the Destiny Heroes, and offered up an official apology for his own part in the ordeal, he had still actively sought Judai out to apologise and thank him for freeing Saiou from the entity that had apparently been controlling him all along.

"I look forward to welcoming you at the Duellist Court once you decide to graduate and become the Neos Knight of the Elemental Heroes," he had said.

"I'll put in a good word for you," he had said.

That good word better be a glowing recommendation in Sho's private opinion.

Judai meanwhile, still secretly a cult leader, had offered his hand and a smile, noting that he still had a long way to go before graduation.

Sho meanwhile, trying not to make his eavesdropping too obvious, had to stop himself from making a face because Judai had done an excellent job of pretending it was a curious coincidence that the Seven Stars Assassins had mobilised soon after his recovery, striking the Society of Light suddenly before vanishing into obscurity just as rapidly, and that Judai's own involvement in them was strictly limited to wrestling Fubuki from their grasp.

Obviously, though a majority believed it simply because their own memories of these last couple of weeks were pretty dodgy, a small number of people were calling bullshit. Edo, clever as he was, likely realised that Judai's involvement with the assassins went far deeper than that. Considering his own association with the Society of Light though, Edo was really the last person who ought to be pointing fingers.

Hearing about Edo's visit later on, Manjoume had sworn that he too would join the Duellist Court as a Knight ‒ as a Dragon Knight no less, pretty much the same thing he'd been declaring before Judai had first taken him down a peg ‒ and that he'd get Edo permanently kicked out or at the very least humiliated enough so that he wouldn't dare show his face around there again ‒ supposedly for humiliating _him_ , but when it came to Manjoume, who really knew what his true motives were.

Going by Sho's theory that Manjoume felt indebted to Judai, then getting back at Edo would probably be Manjoume's way of getting even, even though Judai himself probably didn't care all that much.

Privately, Sho wondered what Manjoume would say if he learned about Judai's recent position as the leader of the Seven Stars Assassins. Technically, there were only a few of them left, but it was a secret cult nonetheless and Judai was still the leader of it, even though he was once again back to wearing his usual half of the pendant.

The ring had been bestowed upon Professor Daitokuji. In part, this was for safekeeping and in part because the thing could apparently stall the deterioration of the professor's physical state.

The other remaining members of the group didn't have similar time constraints. Tania and Don Zaloog, the keepers of the gauntlet and the eye patch of the Dark Items, had ultimately turned out to be Duel Monster Spirits from another realm, granted human and physical shape by their respective items.

The case with Abidos, technically Abidos III and the keeper of the headband, had technically been the same as with Tania and Don Zaloog, barring the fact that he had not been a Duel Monster Spirit but rather the spirit of an ancient pharaoh. Unlike those two, Abidos had also returned his item to Judai, claiming his wishes had already been fulfilled and that he'd return to his palace in the afterlife to wait for Judai to join him, preferably in about a hundred years, so that they'd be able to duel for eternity and just hang out whenever they didn't.

Truth to be told, Sho had been mildly horrified when Judai had readily accepted the offer. Then he had realised that most people didn't get much older than ninety anyway, so Abidos wasn't trying to steal Judai before his time or anything, even if the offer itself was an obvious attempt to usurp Sho's position as Judai's best friend. As such, Sho hadn't exactly been very sad to see Abidos leave. To be completely honest, he wouldn't have been very sad to see Don Zaloog and Tania leave either if it hadn't been for the fact that Misawa had decided to leave with them, dropping out of school despite his status as a Ra Yellow student and despite a promising career as a researcher.

"The incident with the Society of Light has taught me that I've still got a long way to go," he had said.

"I need more experience and I want to see new things; get some practical experience and whatnot. Tania's promised to show me around," he had said.

They all wished him good luck with that.

The choker that used to belong to Camula and the mask that used to belong to Titan had both fractured and crumbled to pieces once their respective owners had been defeated. As for said owners, they too had disappeared. As for where they'd gone, Sho had ultimately opted not to think about it.

Fubuki and Professor Daitokuji were obviously intent on staying with Judai. Despite himself, Sho found this strangely reassuring. He couldn't help but feel a bit worried though, about the future and about the promise that Judai had ultimately made to revive the Three Phantom Demons. More than that though, Sho was worried about Judai's continued habit of skipping out on all classes led by people that weren't Professor Daitokuji.

"Honestly, Judai, I know you've been picked to represent the school before and all, but if you're not careful, then Chronos will try to kick you out of school again."

There was a beat of silence instead of the expected joke; Sho had a distinctly bad feeling about this.

Judai, sitting there by the sea with his fishing rod again, gave Sho an evidently considering look before staring back out at the glimmering ocean. "Say, Sho. Do you remember back when we went to investigate the Abandoned Dorm?"

Of course Sho remembered that; he'd been very much against it, but had been dragged along despite the fact. "I do remember you dragging me there, but as for what happened, I'm not entirely sure about the specifics other than that Asuka was there and that there was some creep‒"

"‒Titan," Judai interrupted, his attention visibly focused upon his float down there in the waves. "That was Titan."

Sho stilled, struck by a sudden realisation. It had been a fairly scary incident, so he'd largely glossed it over as a nightmare-infused delusion and forgotten all about it until now, in the face of the far more menacing Society of Light. "That was Titan, the same guy as‒"

"The very same." Judai reeled in his line despite the fact that there was nothing on the hook, reeling it in fully and putting the fishing rod aside before speaking again. "Chronos originally hired the guy to take me down, and he used Asuka as bait to lure me into a Shadow Game. You guys got there kind of in the middle of things. Do you remember what happened afterwards?"

Sho tried to remember, but it proved surprisingly difficult; he'd had nightmares about it after all, and there was really no way of telling what was true and what was not. Then again, Judai seemed to be able to tell, so‒ "No."

Coming to think of it, Sho did recall having talked to Hayato about it, and he hadn't really‒

Judai pulled one of his knees close to his chest, hugging it. "I got scared. I played along with his Shadow Game despite knowing it wasn't a real from the very start."

Scared?

"Titan broke the rules and the Spirits punished him, dragging him down into the Shadow Realm."

Shadow‒? _"The Shadow Realm?"_

"Shadow Magic originates from the Shadow Realm," Judai explained, still hugging his knee in a rare display of uneasiness. "It's a place that exists in the crevice between this world and what's beyond it."

Sho privately wondered whether or not Judai was referring to the afterlife or if he was referring to something else. Either way, he was more curious about what was making Judai, who otherwise seemed fine with a whole lot of strange and disturbing things, so uneasy. "He broke the rules and got consumed by the shadows, just like in a real Shadow Game. So?"

"I allowed it to happen," Judai admitted at last, once again looking towards the horizon. "I could've saved him, but I didn't. Winged Kuriboh got so upset with me; he avoided me for nearly a month. I was afraid that you guys would feel the same, so‒"

" _You‒"_

"I had considered bringing it up later, but I‒ and then he turned up again, this time as a member of the Seven Stars Assassins, and I just‒"

Of all things, that was what Judai feared; rejection from the people that mattered a great deal to him. Knowing that, things did make an awful lot of sense. Still‒ "Judai, that guy could've killed us. If that really ended up as one of those Shadow Duels of the legends, then there's nothing that you could've done to help; he'd lost and the loser pays the price. If you'd interfered, then who knows what would've happened to you?!"

Judai's eyes were on the horizon again, staring guiltily at something unseen in the distance. "I had the pendant, so I was protected, but‒"

He bit his lip, making Sho wonder just how Judai had managed to keep this all inside of him for so long; not being able to tell anyone. It angered him, and the sudden rush of emotion had him jumping to his feet.

"Okay, let's get this straight, once and for all." He pointed at him and Judai blinked with some surprise yet at the same time remained fairly guarded. If it had been Manjoume, then he'd most definitely have yelled, but right now, yelling would just end up backfiring; Sho somehow knew this. "I'm not angry about you lying and I'm not angry about Titan. Let's face it, he could've killed us or worse, and you did what you could to protect us. I'm not angry about any of that, even if I'm slightly irritated about the fact that you didn't trust us ‒ that you didn't trust _me_ ‒ enough to tell me, even after everything we've been through. So‒"

Borrowing a page out of his brother's book, Sho reached out and flicked Judai on the forehead, earning himself a slightly pained hiss. "‒So, from now on, there'll be no big secrets between us. You're more than my best friend, Judai; we're practically brothers by now. In fact, I'm just going to call you brother from now on, because you can never stop being brothers."

Hand pressed against his forehead, Judai looked up at him, decidedly wide-eyed. It seemed that at last, Sho had managed to stun Judai into actual speechlessness.

It didn't last for very long though, since Judai burst out laughing and got up himself, tightening his hand into a fist and holding it out for Sho to bump it. "It's a promise then, _little brother_."

"Who's the little brother?" Sho snapped without actual spite. "I'm the one teaching you all of this."

Judai snickered. "Oh trust me, Sho. You do not want to be my older brother."

 _Okay?_ "And why is that?"

"Because then you'd be first in line for succession."

Again, Sho found his thoughts coming to a screeching halt because of Judai saying something outrageous. _"What?! Succession?! To what?!"_

Judai's smile turned into a grin and he stopped rubbing at his forehead, raising his index finger. "You do remember that time when we'd only just got here and you presented this crazy idea that our meeting was fated and that quite possibly, I had been a pharaoh in a former life and that you'd been my high priest, like some say is the case with King Yugi and Kaiba, right?"

Sho didn't want to ask; Sho honestly didn't want to know, but‒ "You mean that you're‒?"

Judai shrugged mildly at that. "I wasn't a pharaoh, but I was a prince. I really can't say that I remember much, but apparently, I died. My parents this time around were merchants, but I don't know what happened to them, because we had to leave."

Judai paused a bit, looking thoughtful. "I suppose running away would be another way of putting it, because we've basically been on the run ever since, Yubel and I."

Sho probably didn't want to know, but‒ "Running away? From what? From whom?"

"From the forces of the Dark World." Judai scratched the back of his neck, seemingly a bit uncomfortable talking about it. "Apparently, I'm still eligible for the thing I was supposed to inherit the last time around. Don't ask me about the mechanics of that, because this is just what Yubel has told me."

"The Dark World?" Sho felt himself get weak at the knees and promptly sat down. Judai followed suit.

"It's one of the eleven realms inhabited by what you people call Duel Monster Spirits," he explained. "Basically, there's this mad king named Brron whose goons have been chasing me since I was ten, back when they first found us. After that, Yubel and I've been travelling between the different worlds, trying to keep a few steps ahead of them, but it was hard, because they kept finding us. Then Yubel got the halves of the pendant from the Gravekeeper tribe, giving me one and keeping one for herself."

"And then?"

Judai paused, looking slightly pained. "Then Yubel made me promise to go on ahead; that I'd let her act as a decoy. I didn't want to, but she basically shoved me through a portal and told me to hit the ground running, to find somewhere to hide and to wait for her there. The next thing I knew, I was in Domino City, dodging shadows that had managed to follow me, and I had barely realised that when I freaking collided with that guy, King Yugi."

Sho already knew the rest of the story; King Yugi had asked Judai if he'd wanted to become strong and had then bestowed one of his own cards ‒ protection? ‒ upon him, stepping in as a sponsor to a kid he'd only just met and pressuring the Academia officials into letting him take the exam.

"I always thought that he might've recognised me," Judai admitted. "That he realised how vulnerable I was out there in the open. I mean, I myself realised as much, and I've been told that I can be pretty dense at times. I wasn't entirely sure if coming was such a great idea at first. It's kind of nice though, being able to stay in just one place."

Normally, people would've called that a home. Still‒ "In the Red Dorm?"

"I've got a roof over my head, food to eat, clothes to wear, a place to sleep and people willing to put up with me. It's not as fancy as the Yellow or Blue Dorm, but I don't really need that. We've got fried shrimp over here. I usually don't have to worry about people trying to kill me. I'd say it's an improvement."

"Don't get me wrong though," Judai went on, his face gaining a decidedly fond look. "Yubel's always been there for me and she's always protected me, but I can't keep depending on her forever."

Judai technically also had the Elemental Heroes and the Neo-Spacians to depend on, but Sho opted not to mention it. He understood after all. Having contracts was one thing, but it couldn't really replace the bonds of other human beings. Still‒

As he rose and got ready the next morning, Sho recalled that night over at the Red Dorm where Judai had calmly placed his hand on top of the empty Deck that Professor Daitokuji had provided, taking a calming breath and closing his eyes in evident concentration before drawing one card after the other, engraving contract after contract with practiced ease even though Sho was positive that Judai had never done this before.

Once done with his new Deck, Judai had even moved on to his old one despite the professor's advice to leave it for later. Only then had Sho noticed how weary he'd looked, and by the time he'd finished welcoming Winged Kuriboh and the Elemental Heroes back, he'd passed out then and there, scaring them quite a bit.

' _I've got to keep an eye on him,'_ Sho reaffirmed to himself for the umpteenth time. _'I might be pretty useless right now, but I'll get stronger. I want to become more dependable, but‒'_

Judai was apparently planning on oversleeping today as well. This time around, Sho wasn't planning on letting him go through with it, hence the pail of icy water he had brought along.

 **-.-.-.-**

Through some miracle, Judai made it through his first year without getting kicked out of school.

Through some other miracle, Sho got promoted into Ra Yellow.

A year ago, he would've been delighted. Now though, Sho wondered if it would be alright to move into the Yellow Dorm, because if left to his own devices, would Judai truly be able to get out of bed and to his classes on time?

"Hey, pipe it down, Marufuji! Some people are trying to get some sleep over here!"

Right, there was also Manjoume. Maybe he could ask Manjoume.

"I'm not taking over as Judai's babysitter, so don't even ask! Your face is like an open book!"

How typical of Manjoume Thunder to be entirely useless and unreliable whenever you really needed him.

"Hey! Who's entirely useless and unreliable?! I saved Duel Academia from the Society of Light!"

If Manjoume was not only capable of calling down lightning but also of reading people's minds, then putting him in charge of circumventing Judai's truancy strategies could possibly prove a great idea, considering the fact that he'd become decidedly sneakier since Sho had begun to implement his icy water strategy.

"Alright! Fine! I get it! I'll give it a try! So don't you dare get any closer with that ice bucket, Marufuji Sho!"

Despite everything, their first year at the Duel Academia came to an end without further incident.

Sho really ought to have realised that it was merely the calm before the big storm.

 **-.-.-.-**


	2. The Gate‒Crasher

_The second chapter, at long last._

 _Last edited May 8_ _th_ _2016._

 **-.-.-.-**

 **Year Two:**

‒ **One Serpent, Many Dragons** ‒

 **The Gate-Crasher**

 **-.-.-.-**

If there was a thing or an event that could mark the beginning of the mess that gradually unfolded during Sho's second year at the Central Academy, then it was probably the entrance ceremony. Rather, it was the introduction of a new teacher and four new students; exchange students from the northern, western, eastern and southern branch of the Duel Academia.

First, there was Professor Cobra, previously stationed at West Academy. A scary guy, if Sho ever saw one.

Then from East Academy, there was Amon Garam, who belonged to the powerful Garam merchant group. He looked friendly at a cursory glance, but so did a whole lot of truly unfriendly people, so Sho knew not to make careless assumptions on that if he could avoid it.

From South Academy came Jim Crocodile Cook, some eccentric who had bandages covering the right part of his face, a crazy hat and a live crocodile as a pet, and from West Academy came Austin O'Brien, who seemed to share the same militaristic outlook on life as their new teacher. Sho made a quiet note to definitely avoid the latter to the extent of his ability, and possibly the former as well, though not so much because Jim Cook looked dangerous but rather because he seemed to like keeping dangerous pets and company.

Finally, there was at the very least supposed to be a fourth representative, this one from North Academy. He appeared to be running late though, given that he wasn't anywhere to be seen. In his absence, there were hushed whispers in the audience and even the awkward shrug from one or two of those on stage. The three transfers ‒ four, if one counted Professor Cobra ‒ received the announcement with little surprise. Amon Garam even cracked a smile at that, exchanging a soft-spoken comment with an equally amused-looking Jim Cook whilst Austin O'Brien ignored them both, no change to his facial expression or posture.

In the case with Professor Cobra, it proved rather difficult to tell whether the man's facial expression changed that much as he turned his head towards the new students and thereby partially away from the audience. Not that Sho was complaining or anything. If anything, then he was fairly relieved to see the other's piercing glare directed elsewhere, even for the duration of just a few moments. Sho would obviously have to get used to it quickly though; if he wanted to remain at the Central Academy, that is. Headmaster Samejima was still smiling after all, and that did not bode well for the rest of them.

Frowning at the empty seat nearest to him, Sho figured that it was probably just his paranoia speaking. After all, even though it had been months since that ordeal with the Society of Light, he had by no means forgotten the part that the headmaster had inadvertently played in Saiou's plot. Obviously.

Much like the representative from North Academy, Judai was also absent, which meant that he would either be late or skip the thing altogether; not such a good start, in Sho's private opinion.

Sneaking a look Professor Daitokuji's way, Sho pondered what to make of his new situation. On one hand, he was rather pleased about having been promoted; that the school and the professors had recognised his growth. On the other hand though, there were plenty of drawbacks or at the very least potential ones from what he had seen so far. Then again‒

The doors to the auditorium swung open, turning heads all around.

In the doorway stood two people, one in red and the other in blue, both of them slightly winded. Sho, along with the rest of them, obviously recognised the former; even slightly breathless, Judai swiftly had a grin plastered on his face and a slight but nevertheless cheerful wave to his audience.

The other latecomer, clad in a blue and white jacket, smiled sheepishly in turn, bowing slightly in greeting. "Johan Andersen, second-year from North Academy. Pardon the delay."

So, this was the representative of North Academy, arriving late and contradicting most of Sho's assumptions. Hell, even Manjoume looked surprised ‒ surprised _and_ disdainful actually. There was little recognition though, and if Manjoume hadn't even heard of the guy before, then it was pretty odd for him to have been selected as an overseas champion.

Practically all eyes remained on Johan Andersen as he, still with a somewhat sheepish smile on his face, hurriedly made his way down the staircase to reach the podium, joining up with the rest of the transfers. Even Sho was looking, but he did tear his eyes away for long enough to level a still smiling Judai with a disapproving look, rather tempted to snipe at him for being late and for drawing unnecessary attention to himself. He refrained from doing so however, because now was not the time. Instead, Sho focused on Professor Cobra's announcement that a Duel would be taking place, a demonstration of some sort. And, just like that, the new professor nominated two duellists to do the honours: Johan Andersen and Yuki Judai.

Frankly, Sho knew better than to be surprised.

 **-.-.-.-**

Relocating everyone to the Duelling Arena took more than a few minutes, but Sho did the sensible thing and stuck close to Judai. The crowds tended to part for him after all, or were at the very least prone to letting him weave through them with relative ease. Besides, even though he was still a Red student and quite easygoing as far as the greater school population was concerned, Judai still commandeered a kind of respect these days, even amongst the people of the Blue Dorm. Of course, it was oftentimes a grudging type of respect; a general idea that staying on his good side or well out of his way was advisable. When Sho had first come to realise this, he had pondered what to make of it. He had ultimately discarded the thought in favour of more immediate matters though. Still, it had remained stubbornly at the back of his mind, especially as he parted from Judai and had to struggle on his own.

"Be careful," he had said. "Don't do anything stupid."

As per usual, Judai had taken Sho's worries in stride, heading down into the arena. By no means less worried, Sho had watched him go, only vaguely aware of Manjoume's grumbles about not having been chosen until the latter made a note about something that had bothered Sho as well: the identity of Judai's opponent.

North Academy was and had always been a highly competitive environment, stemming from an old rivalry between them and Central Academy. Of course, when it came to results, they had ultimately lost to Central Academy, having entered said losing streak around the same time and as a direct result of Sho's brother getting accepted to Central‒ Well, technically speaking, as a direct result of Marufuji 'Kaiser' Ryo, Tenjoin Fubuki, and‒ right, Fujiwara Yusuke, wasn't it? The guy Fubuki was‒

Sho's attention flickered briefly to Fubuki, watching the unfolding spectacle from the outskirts of the Blue crowd. Sho's brother had not made any particular mention of either Fubuki or that Yusuke guy in his earlier correspondence. Then again, why discuss such matters with someone like Sho? Heck, even when Sho had written his brother to inform him of Fubuki's return, he had hardly even commented on the matter. Somewhat peeved, Sho had even brought the matter to Fubuki who, with a slight smile and a shrug, had told him that Kaiser had always had his own way of doing things, whatever the heck that was supposed to mean.

In any case, that didn't change the fact that North Academy was a highly competitive environment that coveted strength over inherent status, unlike what was occasionally the case with the Central Academy. After all, with people like Professor Chronos in charge of the entrance exams, it was really no wonder that blue-bloods with decent skill and potential ended up in Blue whilst commoners with similar potential ended up in Yellow, and the stragglers of either category in Red. Then again, as with most things, there were exceptions that both confirmed and busted the rule, Judai being one of them.

In comparison, the general rule in North Academy was that the strong should be on top and that those inferior should obey them. In other words: The strong ruled the weak.

Manjoume had not been very elaborate about his time over at North Academy; not beyond that he had beat the lot into submission, placing himself at the very top of the student hierarchy. Considering that, it was decidedly strange that a completely unknown second-year student had been selected as its representative. Then again, perhaps it was not all that strange. Manjoume's sudden rise to power and subsequent departure had to have upset the balance quite a bit, leaving behind something like a void wherein someone new could rise to the top. Yes, _that_ was bound to be it.

"The Red's looking good, isn't he, against that Ghost guy?"

Sho startled violently, but managed to prevent the rather undignified shriek that lay close at hand.

"Startled ya, eh?"

It served as a testament to how deep Sho had been in his thoughts for him not to have noticed that Jim Cook and Amon Garam had claimed the two empty seats to his left, the latter giving him a smile and a slight wave as his attention snapped to them. "Sorry about that. Are these seats taken?"

Now they technically were, but Sho shook his head anyway.

"Sorry about startling ya," Jim Cook smiled apologetically his direction before shifting his attention back towards the ongoing duel below. "People usually see me coming."

' _That must be because you usually carry around a crocodile on your back'_ , Sho _didn't_ say, because obviously, he had a bit more sense than that. Besides, the fact that said crocodile _wasn't_ currently with its keeper obviously begged the question of its current whereabouts. Actually, Sho found that he would rather not think about it, readily dismissing the forming thought. "No need to apologise; I was the one not paying attention."

Sho shifted his attention back to the ongoing duel, swallowing down what still remained of his earlier embarrassment. He would have been perfectly satisfied, even happy, to leave it at that, without involving himself. After all, Sho already had more than enough connections to relatively high-profile individuals, to his brother and Fubuki and Manjoume and even Ju‒

"That Red guy's really something," Jim Cook finally noted somewhat thoughtfully, his attention still visibly on the events taking place on the arena floor. "Yuki Judai, wasn't it?"

Down below, largely oblivious to the scrutiny, Judai cheerfully launched another attack on one of Johan's monsters. They did seem fairly even otherwise though, which proved worrying to say the very least.

"Not bad, holding his ground against the Great Sage's scion," Amon Garam observed, arms folded across his chest.

Sho couldn't catch himself in time. _"Scion?!"_

More than a few pairs of eyes shifted to him. Heck, even the duellists down below paused in their movements.

"Scion?" Judai repeated, looking to his sheepish-looking opponent.

Johan Andersen scratched the back of his head, looking if possible even more sheepish. "Well, that's‒"

A beat of silence passed, and then Judai shrugged mildly. "Well, whatever. It's my turn, right?"

Trust someone like Judai to say something like that.

Sho was quietly relieved though, because with Judai's words and actions, attention was now firmly directed back to the Duel and away from Sho, who had already embarrassed himself enough.

 **-.-.-.-**

It was an intense yet at the same time ridiculous duel between two powerful yet at the same time ridiculous people. Grinning, Judai extended his hand. A similarly happy and similarly winded Johan readily shook it. Going by how they only seemed to have eyes for each other, they had probably forgotten all about the fact that they had a sizeable audience.

"Man, that was intense!" Judai laughed, giving the hand a slight squeeze. "Nice bluff, Johan!"

Johan squeezed right back and seemed to be in no hurry to let go. "Thanks, Judai! Congrats."

Even amidst the cheers and applause, Sho could not help but think that they both looked remarkably winded, as though they had run laps or something. Then Professor Cobra took the stage, dragging a decidedly surprised and now disentangled Judai along to display a bracelet, announcing that the year would feature Disclosure Duels such as the one demonstrated.

Disclosure Duels. Duels featuring duellists wearing Dis-Belts, enchanted bracelets intended to measure a duellist's potential, or, in case results indicated that potential proved lacking, grounds for demotion or expulsion. Dis-Duels. Dis-Belts. Dis‒Death? Was it really Death Duels and Death Belts?

"Survival Duels all of a sudden? Geez," someone moaned from the row behind Sho and he could not help but agree with the sentiment, if only inwardly.

Going by the looks of it, this year would be practical rather than theoretical; right up Judai's alley, no doubt, and not so much up Sho's. After all, despite the slacking off and the occasional bouts of truancy, Judai had always been in fairly good shape. Besides, despite an initially quite limited experience, he also had an aptitude for most of the physical activities that made out the curriculum along with classes and duels.

 **-.-.-.-**

Contrary to popular belief, becoming a Knight required more than just exclusive summoning contracts and strategies to put them to good use. Strength, physical as well as mental, was essential.

The original purpose of duels was that of ritualistic sparring; to train knights in the art of summoning and spell casting. It was also a means to settle internal disputes and to establish a hierarchy, a ranking. Of course, in order to join the Duellist Court, simply being able to duel was not enough; the job also required general knowledge about the country and how it worked, among other things. Specialisation tended to come afterwards, with the Duellist King or a Dragon Knight assigning someone to a particular task or position.

With the country having been at peace for so long, it was rare for anyone to ever use their abilities other than in duels; participating in unofficial spars or tourneys was the rule, actual wars the exception.

The key to improving one's capabilities as a duellist lay not only in learning new strategies and in partaking in duels; physical training also mattered. Of course, in terms of potential, then training could only do so much; it could unleash potential that was already there, but it could hardly do much about increasing potential that was never really there in the first place.

Johan Andersen definitely had potential. No, he had more than that. He had an exclusive contract with the Gem Beasts and as such per definition already qualified to enter knighthood. He was after an even bigger prize though; the Rainbow Dragon, a Level 10 Light Dragon.

Honestly, some people had not only talent but also recklessness in excess. Obviously, Sho could do without the recklessness, but would it really kill them to share some of the talent?

 **-.-.-.-**

Johan Andersen was an oddball; a talented oddball but an oddball nonetheless. For one thing, he had apparently decided that the Red Dorm was the place to be in spite of an invitation to stay over at the Blue Dorm.

This year, the number of new Osiris Red students was decidedly low, meaning that Judai now had the room to himself. Manjoume had after all effectively moved into that suite of his after Asuka had at last managed to persuade Fubuki to return to the Blue Dorm.

Sho wasn't as surprised as he was displeased to learn from Professor Daitokuji that Johan had apparently decided to move right in and that he and Judai could be found talking excitedly amongst themselves at almost any point in time during the day, even at night. Really, it wasn't as though Sho was particularly jealous or anything; he was merely a bit wary about just how easily this _outsider_ had managed to weasel himself into Judai's personal space, getting really cosy there like he had somehow earned the right to be there.

Okay, so while Sho was _possibly_ ever so _slightly_ upset about the rapid pace with which he was seemingly getting replaced, he did at the same time consider the fact that this Johan guy didn't know anything about the cult situation, and that was _something_ at least. Besides, fact still remained that Sho had earned his position by Judai's side, and even though they were now in different dorms, that didn't really change anything. Hopefully.

There was also the matter of the Seven Stars to deal with; Don Zaloog and his gang, travelling who-knew-where, and Tania and Misawa doing the same. Misawa could probably count as a part of the Stars by now, Dark Item or no Dark Item. But if so, then Sho himself was even more‒

"Honestly, the nerve of those Academia officials! Putting me in Ra Yellow for not being of noble birth? Those bastards!"

Sho was already regretting accepting the promotion into the Ra Yellow Dorm; his next-door neighbour was simply too loud.

Tyranno Kenzan had only been at Duel Academia for about a day and he was already becoming a menace. Apparently, he wasn't at all happy about being placed in Ra Yellow in spite of scoring well in the entrance exam. In addition, he had apparently decided that the best way to show his discontent was to complain loudly, to skip out on the welcoming ceremony and to announce to his recent followers that he would show _them_ , the people of Academia, what he was truly capable of.

Honestly, the nerve of _him_ , complaining about Ra Yellow when his next-door neighbour had been an Osiris Red for a whole year. But no, Sho wasn't about to complain about that, especially not when he felt one day closer to moving right back there. After all, even if the Yellow Dorm had better food, the Red Dorm had way better company. Besides, with Manjoume once again having washed his hands of being Judai's minder, maybe moving back in wasn't such a bad idea after all?

Of course, from the perspective of becoming a Knight of the Duellist Court, heading back to the Red Dorm would probably prove a fateful decision. On the other hand though, had it not been for Judai, then Sho would've never made it as far as he had, so‒

With a sigh, Sho finally gathered his notes, put out the lights and crawled into bed.

Tomorrow. Tomorrow he would decide on what to do, after making sure in person.

 **-.-.-.-**

"Okay, look: Sho, I need a favour."

This was not what Sho had been expecting; what he had been secretly been hoping for. One could say that he was pleasantly surprised. At the same time though, he was worried and trying not to let it show. "A favour, Judai?"

Judai's smile turned even more sheepish at that. His expression was mirrored by the oblivious usurper. They had only been officially introduced moments ago, Johan Andersen returning Sho's greeting with all the more enthusiasm and friendliness.

Annoyingly, Johan Andersen had so far proven rather difficult to hate. Actually, it was rather like‒Judai, with a different hair and accent, which was actually a legitimately scary thought. Sho resisted a sudden urge to grimace when Judai grinned at him, commenting that it had been a while since last time.

"Actually, I've been thinking‒"

That somehow didn't bode very well.

 **-.-.-.-**

In hindsight, Sho definitely should've said no.

 **-.-.-.-**


	3. The Sleeveless Nuisance

_Timeline: Roughly a day after chapter 2. Edit: I screwed up a name. Thanks for pointing it out ^^  
_

 **-.-.-.-**

 **Year Two:**

‒ **One Serpent, Many Dragons** ‒

 **The Sleeveless Nuisance**

 **-.-.-.-**

One way or the other, that annoying first-year from Ra Yellow, Tyranno Kenzan, had become a great nuisance. Furthermore, he had decided that the best way of proving himself to those pesky Academia officials was to occupy a bridge on the property, forcing all those who wished to cross it to have a Duel with him.

Even more annoyingly, Tyranno Kenzan had managed to beat ninety-eight students; it was technically ninety-nine now, counting Sho's recent defeat. Really though, it wasn't as though Sho had really had all that much to lose other than some time and dignity; he had no exclusive summoning contracts to his name, and he had clued the idiot in on this fact beforehand.

In hindsight, it was obvious that the idiot didn't get the hint; didn't get it or promptly chose to ignore it. It hardly mattered whether or not Tyranno Kenzan was truly as hard and dumb as a rock. He was still annoying, and now more than ever, Sho felt sorely tempted to ask Professor Daitokuji for some useful tips on dark magic, or more specifically on hexing people into oblivion without having to resort to duelling. Having had his arse handed to him multiple times in fencing and other physical sparring activities, Sho found that he would rather avoid those as well. Training was after all one thing; he needed that. Competing was another matter; Sho hardly needed to compete in order to become aware of how his skills fared when pitted against those of others.

Of course, these days, calling himself weak would be selling himself short; Sho had been weak back when he had first arrived at the academy, but that was then. These days, he was not weak per se, merely weak compared to the people he usually sparred with. Compared to the rest, Sho was average or thereabouts; he had some skill but lacked the confidence to utilise it fully, according to some. Others still regarded him as weak though. In a way, Sho supposed they were right.

"Come on, wimp." Tyranno Kenzan shot him a decidedly exasperated look, sitting down across from Sho on a patch of grass. "You've got to have something."

Sho sat surrounded by Kenzan's lot, having been forced down onto his knees.

Had this particular event taken place during Sho's first year, then he would probably have been scared. Now on the other hand, having lived through that ordeal with Saiou and the Society of Light last year, Sho was less scared or impressed and all the more exasperated. " _I told you_. Back when you challenged me, I told you that I didn't have _anything_ worth taking, so don't try to blame this on me! What's up with _you_ occupying bridges anyway?! If you've got a problem with Yellow, then feel free to drop the Hell out. Head off to North Academy for all that I care! They like strong people and will no doubt welcome you with open arms!"

Okay, so maybe he was venting a little. Or a lot. Besides, in the offhand case that Tyranno Kenzan really went to North Academy then he would no doubt have to ditch that sleeveless jacket of his, because of the climate if nothing else. Then again, wasn't there a saying that idiots didn't catch colds? If so, then were idiots also impervious to influenza, pneumonia, and hypothermia? Had Sho been a more malicious sort, then he would have felt decidedly tempted to put it to the test ‒ for science, if nothing else.

Tyranno Kenzan actually had the gall to burst out laughing, patting him on the head like he was some type of dog. "That's right, that's right! I'm strong! You do understand!"

Sho would've punched him. Maybe Sho _should've_ punched him instead of submitting to the indignity of having his hair ruffled in a manner that was somewhere in-between mocking and affectionate. Sho would've punched him, but he settled for swatting the hand away; he was vastly outnumbered after all.

"Hey you."

Sho didn't bother hiding his irritation as he directed his attention towards the minion addressing him. _"What?"_

"You're that guy, aren't you?"

That made him pause. "That guy?"

As the others leaned in for a closer look, Sho wavered between discomfort and irritation. "You'll have to be a bit more specific than that."

"Boss, he's that guy from the opening ceremony! The one who interrupted the Opening Duel!"

Interrupted? Oh.

"Hoh?" Tyranno Kenzan looked positively intrigued. "He did, did he?"

Oh, _right_.

"Coming to think of it, I think I've seen you hanging out with that Red guy and that Blue Northerner…"

Oh, great.

"I want to Duel them."

Fan- _fucking_ -tastic.

With an irritable sigh, Sho steeled himself against the urge to tear at his hair. "Then go challenge them; I can't speak for that Johan guy, but Judai would definitely‒"

"I would definitely what now?" As ever, Judai had impeccable timing.

"You! Duel me!" As ever, Tyranno Kenzan had zero respect for proper duelling etiquette. And to think that he still wondered why the officials had put him in Yellow, Sho privately thought, rising to his feet now that attention had been abruptly redirected towards the newcomers.

Judai meanwhile regarded Kenzan with mild curiosity before his eyes flickered to rest on Sho where he now stood, still partially surrounded. "Hey Sho, you didn't turn up at the meeting place, so we figured you got held up somewhere."

Well, no shit.

"Hey!" Obviously, Kenzan did not appreciate being ignored. "That weak guy, is he a friend of yours?"

Well, that definitely got Judai's attention. "Sho isn't weak."

"Beating him was so easy; I didn't even break a sweat."

Utterly, utterly humiliating.

"You shouldn't talk about others like that; it's disrespectful," Johan Andersen commented, actually sounding a bit annoyed on Sho's behalf.

"Only the strong are worthy of respect!" Tyranno Kenzan retorted, deck already in hand. "Now Duel me already!"

Johan Andersen sidled up to Judai where they both stood on the opposite riverbank, saying something that was too soft for the rest of them to hear. Judai waved off his concerns though and as Johan stepped aside once more, Judai pulled out his deck. The humiliation aside, Sho felt just a tiny bit happy about the fact that Judai still remained willing to defend his honour. Kind of.

 **-.-.-.-**

Ultimately, Sho was able to find a fair amount of satisfaction as the Duel concluded, especially in how; he resolved to forever treasure the memory of Tyranno Kenzan's utterly baffled expression as the guy lost not only the Duel but also his footing, sending him splashing down into the stream below. Unfortunately, Kenzan had been quick not only to recover but also to change his mind. Annoyingly quick. "Sho, my bro! Are you meeting up with Judai-bro again today?"

And to think that less than a day had passed since Kenzan, after stating his intention of making Sho his henchman, had lost to Judai; Judai, who in turn had reaffirmed his own claim. _"Sho's his own person, but he's family to me,"_ he had said, unwittingly warming Sho's heart. _"And he doesn't look all too keen on joining you either, so lay off."_

Those had been his words and such had been Judai's claim; they were family, brothers, because no matter what, that would never‒

"Sho, my bro! Wait up! Bro!"

Ultimately, Kenzan had been all too taken, not only by Judai's duelling but also his spirit; hence the current situation.

Somehow, getting demoted and moving back into the Red Dorm had never seemed more appealing.

 **-.-.-.-**

"Looks like Judai-bro and Johan aren't here yet…"

Way to state the obvious, Sho privately thought but didn't comment on it, taking a seat upon one of the many fallen rock pillars. While waiting, he made sure to scan their surroundings, knowing too well that relaxing one's guard in such a place was the same as inviting misfortune. His attention was soon called back though, levelling upon Kenzan where the latter sat on the ground, rummaging through that sack he had carried along. From the looks of it, Kenzan had brought along enough meat to sustain a smaller pack of wolves for at least three days, which meant that Kenzan had either miscalculated or that he had forgotten that he was no longer the head of a band of henchmen or possibly‒ "You can't honestly mean to start a barbeque party in here?"

"I can't?" Kenzan said, evidently puzzled.

With a heavy sigh, Sho rose to his feet. "Of course not. Think about it."

Eyes wide, Kenzan scanned the area and then looked back. "But it's such a good spot; an open space, no trees or anything."

Oh great, he wasn't even considering the ruin. This of course begged the question as to just how the heck he had managed to survive this long. "At least move outside the circle, Kenzan."

"Why?"

Of for the love of‒ "Ruin or not, it's here for a reason."

"It is?"

Sho opened his mouth, but before he had launched into a more elaborate explanation, there was rustling from the woods. He tensed. Briefly, Kenzan did the same. Then, in an all too doglike manner, Kenzan's head picked up; if he had had a tail, then Sho had no doubt it would have been wagging. "Judai-bro! I've brought the meat!"

"Yo, Kenzan, Sho," Judai greeted, waving as he appeared amongst the foliage. "Sorry about the wait. I overslept and Johan doesn't know your expert technique."

"Expert technique?" Johan questioned, emerging moments thereafter. "I tried cold water; you didn't even budge."

"Ah‒" Judai grinned. "About that‒"

Really, Sho was regretting this arrangement already.

 **-.-.-.-**

In the end, they did end up having the barbeque among the ruins, because Judai, who was allegedly the expert, insisted it was alright. "No worries, no worries," he had said, dismissing Sho's concerns with a wave. "I asked Professor Daitokuji; he said it was alright."

On one hand, Sho had greater confidence in Professor Daitokuji's judgement than Judai's. On the other hand, Sho had decidedly less trust in Professor Daitokuji than he had in Judai. "Why? I thought you said this was‒"

"Well it is," Judai agreed, knowing well what Sho was talking about. "Still, it's alright."

"Why is it alright?" asked Kenzan, though Johan had obviously had the same thing on his mind.

"It'd take a lot of energy," Judai had said, taking a bite out of a freshly grilled piece of meat. "An ordinary Duel wouldn't affect the rift; maybe if we all duelled here at once, it would be a different matter."

"What about excess energy generated by Duels?" Johan argued, evidently intrigued. He obviously had some knowledge of dimensional rifts; as expected of the Great Sage's protégé. "Wouldn't a rift draw it in?"

"Normally, it would," Judai agreed, looking entirely too much at ease. "Fortunately for us, this place is special."

"Special?"

"That's right," interrupted Professor Daitokuji as the man himself stumbled out of the bushes, followed by Pharaoh. "Honestly, what is with this undergrowth? It's practically a jungle…"

It was, more or less, a jungle and that much made sense, seeing that gardening only took place on this part of the island either as a voluntary effort or as a forced group activity whenever the undergrowth came a bit too close to the dorm. Granted, there were beaten paths running all over campus, but none of them ran particularly close to the ruins, making it a relatively open yet oftentimes secluded place to hang out, so long as they didn't let the vegetation get out of hand. "Professor?"

"Hold on for a moment, please, let me catch my breath. Need I remind you that I'm not so young these days?"

To an outsider, he probably looked young enough. Kenzan and Johan both looked rather puzzled, but since Judai had not told them, Sho had no reason to do so either. Besides, it was hardly any of their business anyway.

"The late chairman buried something here, on this island," the professor delivered at last, taking a seat amongst the rest of them. "Naturally, he was aware of the island's unique properties. As evidenced by these structures, even the people of old were aware of them."

Going by the look on Kenzan's face, Professor Daitokuji had already lost one listener. Upon closer inspection, Kenzan and Judai were both more intent on tending to the meat than on listening to Professor Daitokuji's explanation. As a matter of fact, Sho was only half listening to it himself, mostly because he had already heard a similar explanation in the past. Johan seemed to be listening rather intently however. "Unique properties? Like rift activity?"

"Indeed," the professor nodded profusely. "I believe one could say that the rift activity in this area serves as the foundation of everything. Granted, there is also the terrain itself; volcanic activity releases a lot of energy after all. However, though there has been plenty of energy here from the start, the island was very unstable back when the Academy was first built. Granted, some rift activity is needed to summon in the first place, but with grounds as unstable as this one used to be, putting a school here would have been inadvisable, so…"

A look of understanding dawned upon Johan's face. "The _Sangenma_."

"The _Sangen_ -what now?" Kenzan echoed, interest piqued.

"The Three Phantom Demons, each of them a Level 10," Johan mumbled, giving the ground beneath them a somewhat startled look. "So that's why…"

"Normally, there would be a large build up of spirit energy generated by all the duelling going on," Judai noted, taking another bite out of a piece of meat. Idly, Sho noted that his appetite seemed even larger than usual. "The _Sangenma_ absorb it, preventing the rifts from widening."

"Wai-wai-wait a minute, Judai-bro!" Kenzan protested. "You mean to say that the reason this island is stable in the first place is because there are some Level 10 spirits just hanging about, eating the energy?!"

Judai opened his mouth to respond, but Professor Daitokuji proved quicker. "They're not hanging around! They're sealed!"

Kenzan looked positively intrigued. "Where?"

The professor threw up his hands in apparent exasperation; Sho found that he could very much relate. "Even if I knew the exact location, I surely wouldn't tell you where to find them, Mr. Kenzan! Even if you managed to summon them, they would not be easily controlled!"

Professor Daitokuiji took a moment to breathe and then visibly calmed, reaching up to adjust his glasses. "Of course," he went on with his usual smile. "That's only in the offhand scenario that you or anyone carrying similar ambitions would be able to undo the seal, which is, in my opinion, rather unlikely."

Kenzan looked moderately offended at that, but he seemingly got over it as Judai handed him another rib. "In other words, you need to fulfil some type of criteria?"

Judai snickered at that, his smile broadening slightly at Kenzan's surprise. "You don't, so I'm happy for you. I do, which is why some guy was planning on stealing my soul last year."

Sho buried his head in his hands, wondering in part what the heck Judai was thinking and in part what Sho himself could possibly have done in order to deserve all of this. When he looked up, Kenzan was gaping. Johan's expression meanwhile had darkened visibly. "Judai," the latter began, soft voice taking on a slightly steely edge. " _Someone tried to steal your soul?"_

A rib still halfway into his mouth, Judai waved dismissively. If anything, then the look in Johan's eyes only darkened; the unwitting usurper was upset, and Sho could understand why. Judai apparently couldn't though, a testament to his obliviousness as well as to the fact that he was no longer particularly concerned about the major events of the previous year. "It's no big deal, really, so enough about that. We've got to work out strategies for our Survival Duels, right?"

Oh right. Crap. Sho gave his own bracelet a momentary look of despair before sighing deeply. The turmoil lately had nearly made him forget that his future as a duellist was ultimately riding on his performance, which had so far been anything but good. Still‒ "Judai, don't change the subject. Just because this isn't a big deal to you doesn't mean this isn't a big deal to the rest of us."

Sho had spent days worrying and nights standing guard at Judai's bedside, not knowing if he would ever recover. Sho had also been dragged into the madness that followed, trying to keep from having a nervous breakdown as Judai had taken over a cult and waged guerrilla warfare against another. Granted, the soul-stealing part had been fairly insignificant, given that the plan had never been implemented, but still‒

"Sho‒" Well, at least he had the decency to look a bit guilty. Still, that was just‒ "Oh, hi there Karen!"

Karen?

Sho turned, following Judai's gaze. So did a number of others. Kenzan looked to a spot just behind himself. Then he made a startled noise and swiftly vacated his spot, seeking refuge on higher ground. _"C-c-c-crocodile,"_ he stuttered. Sho recalled that unlike some, Kenzan had actually boycotted the opening ceremony, meaning that his old followers must've failed to mention it for one reason or the other. Hoh.

"Hey, I brought some fish."

Given the presence of the crocodile, Sho was not all that surprised to find Jim Crocodile Cook emerging from the bushes holding a fishing rod in one hand and his strung up catch in the other. Still, it begged the question why he and the crocodile were there in the first place. Of course, given the evidence so far, there was really only one viable conclusion.

 **-.-.-.-**

"We meet again."

Evidently.

"You are Sho, I take it? The name's Jim Cook."

Sho shook the extended hand; the grip was warm and firm, devoid of ill intentions. "Marufuji Sho."

Unlike so many others, Jim did not pause at the name, increasing the likelihood of him never having heard of Sho's family, Ryo in particular. The same really couldn't be said about Kenzan, who had gone from staring at the crocodile to staring at Sho in obvious disbelief. " _Marufuji_?! You mean _that_ Marufuji, Kaiser Ryo?! Are you possibly related to him, the Knight of‒?"

Really, to think that it was only yesterday that that Sho had been told to kneel and accept the other as his new overlord… "Cyber Dragons, yes. He just so happens to be my older brother."

Kenzan gaped. Jim meanwhile let out a low whistle. "Dragon Knight, huh? Not bad."

"Cyber End Dragon is certainly nothing to laugh at," Johan agreed. "Word has it that it's pretty impressive."

"It was pretty impressive," Judai agreed in turn, reminiscing. "Of course, the first time around was pretty tame compared to our Official Duel‒"

"Official Duel?" A number of people looked to Sho for an explanation. For some reason.

"Ryo picked Judai as his opponent for his Graduation Duel; it was one of the highlights of last year," Sho finally sighed, very deliberate in leaving out that it had also been one of the few important events of the previous year that had not involved the threat of expulsion, death or brainwashing.

"And the result?" At least this time around, they turned their attention to someone who had been directly involved. Thankfully.

Judai shrugged mildly. "It was a draw. I can't say either of us really went full out until towards the very end though. I'd love to Duel him again sometime, but I'm pretty sure he'd kick my ass."

Sho supposed that there, all things considered, was probably some truth to it. Then again‒ "You didn't have your contract with the Neo-Spacians back then though."

"Ah, that's true."

Sho sighed, steeling himself. "So, should we be expecting any further interruptions or has everyone turned up?"

They better have, because if not, then the day would most certainly be over before they got anything done.

"Well," Judai said at last, scratching his chin somewhat thoughtfully. "Thunder said no and Fubuki got dragged off by Asuka. So yeah, everyone's here."

Cue another round of enthusiastic disbelief from Kenzan. "By Thunder, you mean Manjoume Jun?! And Tenjoin Fubuki?! Aw man, I wanna Duel them!"

Somehow, Sho sincerely doubted this arrangement, regretted it even. Even so, a promise was a promise. "Could we please just ignore famous people and rift activity and just get back to the matter at hand, like how the heck we, especially me, are going to survive this school year? I mean, yeah, I did promise to help out with figuring out a way for Johan to pass his Ceremonial Trials, but I really won't be able to help anyone out if I'm kicked out of school before then!"

Well, that certainly got their attention. "As for that, you've already done plenty, I think," Johan said, and rather earnestly at that. "Granted, we haven't exactly had a chance to try it out yet, and if it's really like that then I'm not sure if I‒"

"No worries, Sho," Judai pitched in, giving him a thumbs-up. "We can both get kicked out and go travelling instead. We can go visit Hayato, maybe even Misawa and Tanya and‒"

" _Misawa Daichi?!"_

Really, really regretted it.

 **-.-.-.-**


End file.
